1.Cotton towels are best for hands and bodies, while linen towels are best for dishes and glassware.
Terry is the most absorbent of all weaves. It is an ideal towel for hand and body drying as it is looped both sides, thus increasing its surface area.
Crash linen is a combination of linen, cotton and rayon that works really well for drying dishes. It helps to increase the evaporation rate.
Damask linen works really well for drying glasses and dishes where lint-free results matter.
Flax derived linen is super absorbent, and strong. It is naturally resistant to bacteria, won’t leave lint on glassware, and absorbs 20 percent of its own weight in water.

2.Consider the content of the towel fabric. High quality towels are usually made out of fine, long cotton fiber. Some of the more expensive towels are made from Egyptian or Brazilian cotton. While hard to find, Supima cotton is another excellent choice of long fiber cotton that is grown in the United States.

3.Look closely. Do the fibers stand up like grass in a garden? That’s a good sign! If they’re flat as a tack, they won’t feel very good or work that well.

Feel them. Are they soft? Or are they rough? If the towel has a soft, velvety feel and a bit of weight to it, it is good quality. If the towel is scratchy, or feels like canvas, it is low quality (meaning, don’t buy the dollar-store towels!).
Check the size. If you’re tall or large, look for bath sheets which are bigger than the average towel size and make drying yourself quickly a lot easier.